Patio Plants

As the days get warmer, patio plants that have spent the winter indoors can be moved outside again. If and when this is done, a few precautions should be observed. First, do not move your plants outside permanently all at once. Plants that have spent the winter inside need to adapt to the harsher outdoor conditions. This is a process called “hardening.&rdquor; Place them outside for several hours a day, but bring them in again at night. Second, do not place them in full sunlight at first. If you do, tender leaves may be burned, and the plants may wilt even though they are well watered. Place plants where they will get good, indirect light for the first several days exposure. Finally, keep them out of the wind. Tender winter foliage is easily damaged by the drying effects and physical abrasion of wind. When your house plants are hardened off after seven to ten days exposure, they can be moved outside permanently for the spring. If frost threatens, bring them back inside for the night, even if they have been well hardened.